<p>Calmom wrote:</p>
<p>“This is from the USAID web site - I tried the State Dept. but I keep getting error messages.”</p>
<p>The requirements for USAID are very different from State. USAID could also be a rewarding career path for OP’s d.</p>
<p>Here are the requirements for the State dept, from their website.</p>
<p><a href=“Who We Look For - Careers”>http://careers.state.gov/officer/who-we-look-for</a></p>
<hr>
<p>Who can become a Foreign Service Officer?</p>
<p>To be eligible, the U.S. Department of State requires that all applicants be:
•U.S. citizens on the date they submit their registration package
•At least 20 years old and no older than 59 years of age on the day you submit your registration
•At least 21 years old and not yet 60 on the day you are appointed as a Foreign Service Officer</p>
<p>Available for worldwide assignments, including Washington, D.C. </p>
<p>Even though you are not required to know a foreign language to become a FSO, proficiency in one or more languages will enhance your competitiveness for selection. </p>
<p>If you are a capable, healthy and dedicated candidate who is prepared to step up to the challenges facing our country and the world, we want to talk to you. </p>
<p>Are you ready to make a difference? Click here to review 13 dimensions (pdf) sought in all Foreign Service candidates and explore the traits needed for a successful and fulfilling career.</p>
<hr>
<p>So basically, the only requirements are age and US citizenship. There are no formal educational requirements at all. On the other hand, you have to pass the tests so as a practical matter you need a good education. Here’s how one FSO describes it in the AFSA publication “Inside a U.S. Embassy,” which is worth reading cover to cover. </p>
<p><a href=“https://www.afsa.org/Portals/0/iuse_career_prep.pdf”>https://www.afsa.org/Portals/0/iuse_career_prep.pdf</a></p>
<hr>
<p>Education is key. </p>
<p>It does not matter what you studied or where you went to</p>
<p>college (technically, it does not matter if you went to college at all), but to</p>
<p>survive the exams and thrive in the career, you will need to have a broad academic</p>
<p>foundation, intellectual curiosity, good study habits, and strong research</p>
<p>and writing skills.</p>
<p>Live overseas if you can. </p>
<p>In my A-100 class, 85 percent had previously lived
overseas either for school, volunteer service, or work. Going abroad is a good
gut-check for anyone thinking about a career in the Foreign Service, and
provides ample anecdotes to demonstrate the 13 Dimensions.</p>
<hr>
<p>(Note: I copy/pasted the 13 Dimensions in a post upthread.)</p>
<p>So study abroad is good; working abroad may be even better. </p>
<p>So much of what you do as an FSO you can’t learn at university. The State Department knows it has to train career officers for every job they undertake. Not just language training, but craft training in your cone (I see they’re calling it “career track” now), the “crash and bang” course (there was an article about this in the New York Times a few months ago), etc.</p>
<p>The State Department certainly values graduate education. FSOs who make it to mid-level and have distinguished themselves can pursue graduate study at the Department’s expense at Princeton and elsewhere.</p>
<hr>
<p>The Department’s University Economics Training Program (UET) is designed for highly motivated mid-career FS-03 and FS-02 Foreign Service economic-coned officers, who have both outstanding work records and strong undergraduate preparation in economics and quantitative methods</p>
<p>The National Defense Intelligence College (NDIC) Master of Science in Strategic Intelligence (MSSI) program.</p>
<p>The U.S. Army War College (AWC) in its Master of Strategic Studies Distance Education Program. </p>
<p>Princeton Master’s In Public Policy (MPP) Fellowship Program </p>
<p>Organizational Management (OM) Fellows Program sponsored by the George Washington University (GWU) College of Arts and Sciences Department of Organizational Sciences (OS) Fellows. The Organizational Management Fellows Program is a one-year Master’s Degree program.</p>
<p>Various DOD institutions such as the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, Air War College, and National War College where participants can earn Master’s degrees.</p>
<hr>
<p>I apologize for the length. In any case, OP’s daughter has to make a decision tomorrow (!!), but whatever she chooses she can be assured that it would not disqualify her from the Foreign Service if that continues to be her goal. </p>
<p>Please let us know!</p>